Peer Review

Summary

This project will provide a community focused WASH program to 24 families living in Union Nr 3 Abajo, Trojes, Honduras

Background

This project will improve the health of 102 people by providing improved drinking water; latrines, if needed; hygiene education; use and maintenance of the filter and safe water storage training, deworming; and follow-up monitoring to improve the health of 24 families. These families live in the community of Union Nr 3 Abajo located in the Municipality of Trojes, El Paraiso Honduras.
For the past 5 years PWW, which functions as Agua Pura para el Mundo, a nationally recognized Honduran non- governmental organization, has worked in the remote Trojes region of Honduras, which government of Honduras has identified as a high-need and underserved region of the country. Residents in these communities, which number over 200 settlements, have no access to a community water system and use contaminated water from nearby streams and rivers; in addition, the majority of the population does not have access to a safe latrine. Residents do not treat their water, and open defecation contributes significantly to the contamination of the water resources. Individuals in this community work in agriculture and per-capita income is around $1.25 per person per day. They are largely smallholder farmers who grow shade-grown coffee for export in addition to a small amount of beans, corn and cattle. Children attend primary school in small community schoolhouses, yet access to secondary school is extremely limited. These communities are relatively isolated, and have very scant access to electricity, mobile phones or reliable health services. PWW seeks to address this lack of clean water, safe sanitation and hygiene knowledge in Trojes that poses a significant health burden to an underserved region.

Location

Attachments

Focus

People Getting Safe Drinking Water:
102

School Children Getting Water:

People Getting Sanitation:
102

People Getting Other Benefits:
102

All beneficiaries will be able to attend 3 workshops related to health, environmental and personal hygiene. Also, at least 6 community members will be trained as Community Agents in filter installation and filter maintenance.

Application Type: Project Funding

Start Date: 2013-10-01

Completion Date: 2014-01-17

Technology Used:

PWW employs proven, effective and affordable technology to provide a complete WASH package to Hondurans. The point of use technology used is simple for recipients to use and necessitates minimal maintenance inputs. According to the Center for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technology (CAWST), biosand filters are proven to remove up to 98.5 percent of bacteria, 99.9 percent of protozoa, 95 percent of turbidity and 90-95 percent of iron.

The added benefit of latrine access reduces the environmental contamination of open defecation and is necessary to stop the transmission of pathogens from feces to humans. In these communities, pour- flush latrines are being implemented. Sanitation, coupled with targeted, effective hygiene education, beneficiaries have the tools, understanding and information they need to reduce the burden of waterborne disease.

PWW’s approach focuses on community engagement and participation, and extensive educational initiatives—two facets we believe significantly strengthen the success of our programming. Community members play an active role in the implementation of PWW projects:
They work with PWW staff on filter installation and latrine construction, ensuring that they have a complete understanding of how each unit works and how to maintain them to their maximum capacity.

Phases:

This project will be completed in one phase.

Community Organization:

In addition to the community involvement, volunteers are selected in each community to receive training to serve as Community Agents, who provide technical support for households. The main objective of this training is to build the local capacity of community members and to establish institutional knowledge to support total behavior change in the use of the filter, latrine, and hygiene practices. After the training, community agents help to support household -level hygiene and sanitation improvement activities.

Post installation activities include PWW staff returning to the community multiple times to work with the community agents, monitor the effectiveness of the training, access the change in hygiene behaviors of the beneficiaries and to take corrective actions if necessary.

Beneficiaries also participate in the building of their latrine through providing some materials, digging the pit and participating in the installation of the latrine. They also contribute a small sum towards their filter.

Government Interaction:

Ancillary activities:

Other Issues:

As the second poorest country in Central America, per capita GDP in Honduras is $4,200 USD—ranking 156th in the world—and an estimated 65 percent of the 8.1 million Hondurans live below the poverty line (CIA 2011). In Trojes, only about 1 in 2 individuals have access to clean water and safe sanitation. Trojes is one of Honduras’ poorest regions, accessible only by treacherous, unpaved roads. Known as the “recovered zone” of the district of El Paraíso, this area was once part of the Republic of Nicaragua. The influx of Contra rebels into this area in the 1980s caused many people to flee the region, and it has been left with minimal support from either central or regional governments.
Specifically, PWW seeks to address this lack of clean water, safe sanitation and hygiene knowledge in Trojes that poses a significant health burden to an underserved region. In Trojes, homes are clustered along a few dirt roads or scattered across the landscape and reachable only by footpaths. The mountainous roads are steep and rutted, causing distinct challenges to residents in securing goods or services. Many families have built a rudimentary system of running water, consisting of a rubber hose that delivers water by gravity from a small pond in a spring or a creek at a higher elevation. At the house, the hose usually empties into a barrel or bucket in the yard. Ninety-eight percent of the families do not have a protected water source. Livestock, human waste, other houses and runoff all contribute to the degradation of the water quality in the community. Open defecation is widely practiced.
Access to improved water, sanitation and hygiene practices save lives and have significant implications for the reduction of poverty. Such access affects primary school enrollment by reducing illnesses that cause children to miss school, improves adult labor productivity, increases economic productivity, and reduces environmental hazards related to polluted water (World Bank Group 2008), as PWW project beneficiaries, local schoolteachers, and health workers have all attested. In developing countries, the most affected populations are those living in extreme poverty, especially those located in rural regions such as Trojes.

Maintenance Revenue:

PWW’s approach focuses on community engagement and participation, and extensive educational initiatives—two facets we believe significantly strengthen the success of our programming. Community members play an active role in the implementation of PWW projects: all community members work with PWW staff on filter installation and latrine construction, ensuring that they have a complete understanding of how each unit works and how to maintain them to their maximum capacity.
Following the training of Community Agents in filter installation, PWW health promoters assist them with the installation of the filters in their respective communities. Following installation, PWW meets with the Community Agents one month after installation and then seven months after installation. During this seven month visit, PWW health promoters conduct a monitoring survey in 15% of the homes in the community. This is survey determines the use of the filter, effectiveness and the improved change in behavioral habits such as hand washing.

We expect this solution to succeed based on a proven track record of success and results from our monitoring initiative. In a recent monitoring report, 91 percent of households surveyed have improved the quality of their water through properly using the biosand filter. Improved water quality equals healthier families.

Maintenance Cost:

Metrics:

Metrics being tracked during implementation would be:

- Number of filters installed
- Number of latrines and wash stations built
- Number of community members attending trainings
- Participation from whole community.

These will be tracked throughout the course of the project by our staff members. If any adjustments need to be made during implementation, they will plan accordingly.

7 months after installation, Pure Water health promoters will visit the community and filters with Community Agents. During that visit they will conduct a monitoring survey. PWW's goal is to meet the indicators below in each community.
Specific Project Objectives
1. Improve the quality of water available in the rural households in the communities of Trojes, El Paraíso.
Goals:
a. 90% of biosand filters provided are in use.
b. 80% of the biosand filters in use have all recommended installation conditions.
c. 100% of users apply at least 8 out of ten filter operation rules.
d. 80% of homes use a safe water storage container.

2. Improve hygiene habits of families in the rural households in the communities of Trojes, El Paraíso.
Goals:
a. 80% of interviewees report washing their hands at least at two of the key times established.
3. Improve sanitation of families in the rural households in the communities of Trojes, El Paraíso.
Goals:
a. 95% of the families that received latrines report that they are not practicing opening defecation.

4. Strengthen local capacity and abilities for the sustainability of the systems implemented in the project.
Goals:
a. 80% of community agents have done at least 4 household visits in the first year after installation/supervision.

Cost: $15,149

See attached

Co Funding Amount:

Community Contribution
Amount: $504

Small sum for filter and contribution of materials for latrines

Fund Requested: $15,149

Implementing Organization:

Attachments

Implementation, Water quality testing.

Christine Roy of International Lifeline Fund

Your project looks really interesting and very comprehensive. I have a few questions concerning the implementation of your project:
1. Could you elaborate on how you will about implementing all aspects of the project in 1 day - implementing the biosand filters, conduct 3 workshops and train the community agents?
2. Who is responsible ...

Your project looks really interesting and very comprehensive. I have a few questions concerning the implementation of your project:

1. Could you elaborate on how you will about implementing all aspects of the project in 1 day - implementing the biosand filters, conduct 3 workshops and train the community agents?
2. Who is responsible for the maintenance of the biosand filters? What are the maintenance costs?
3. How are you testing the water quality? Who tests the waters after the implementation of the filters?
4. Are the community agents responsible for the latrine construction?

Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

Hello Christine,
Sorry, that was supposed to say that the project will be completed in one phase. I will make that change! The installation process usually takes one and a half days- depending upon the number of filters to install and the number of PWW employees working in that community. This does not include any of the workshops, soci...

Hello Christine,

Sorry, that was supposed to say that the project will be completed in one phase. I will make that change! The installation process usually takes one and a half days- depending upon the number of filters to install and the number of PWW employees working in that community. This does not include any of the workshops, socialization or Community Agent training.

The Community Agents are responsible for the maintenance of the filters. They are trained to address any issues and if they have any questions they can either consult other Community Agents or reach out to PWW. PWW meets with the Community Agents 2-3 times in the first 7 months after installation to help them address any issues. They are provided with contact info for PWW and PWW employees should they have any issues or questions. With the bio sand filter it is extremely rare that there are any It is extremely rare that maintenance costs are incurred. There are no moving parts, no electricity is needed and it can last up to 15 years. Some times a filter might need more sand- and Community Agents are prepared to help with this. Any cost incurred by this is picked up by the community member ( should it be their fault), or by PWW if it is not the beneficiaries fault.

We were conducting water analysis alongside our monitoring. However we were finding the same results and these results usually all pointed to more education or training. We then revised and improved our installation process and training to address these issues. We have since conducted a few longitudinal studies and a few months ago the University of Maine conducted water testing on previously installed bio sand filters and on Sawyer filters, with positive results.

Water source?

Dipti Vaghela of Team Blue

Thanks for your proposal. I've been trying to comb thru it to find details regarding the water source and access method. Could you please explain where the water it and how it will be accessed and re-charged? (I'm sorry if I'm asking and it's actually obviously stated somewhere.
Thank you,
Dipti

Thanks for your proposal. I've been trying to comb thru it to find details regarding the water source and access method. Could you please explain where the water it and how it will be accessed and re-charged? (I'm sorry if I'm asking and it's actually obviously stated somewhere.

Thank you,
Dipti

Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

Hello Dipti,
Some people do access small surface streams directly but most people access small local springs which they tap by connecting a hose directly. This delivers water straight to their homes. Distances range from under 20 meters up to 500 meters.
Most of the water sources are springs and only some dry up during the summer. M...

Hello Dipti,

Some people do access small surface streams directly but most people access small local springs which they tap by connecting a hose directly. This delivers water straight to their homes. Distances range from under 20 meters up to 500 meters.

Most of the water sources are springs and only some dry up during the summer. Most have sufficient water year round as Trojes is a rather wet region of Honduras.

Question on the Financials

Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

Hi,
Apologies for the last minute question. They can be answered later, and it does not affect the review.
Please explain some of the numbers (or the financial tab need to be adjusted):
Total Cost: 15654 (not 15149)
Is Laird Norton contributing? Or have you also applied to them?
The costs for your promoters and project managers ...

Hi,

Apologies for the last minute question. They can be answered later, and it does not affect the review.

Please explain some of the numbers (or the financial tab need to be adjusted):
Total Cost: 15654 (not 15149)
Is Laird Norton contributing? Or have you also applied to them?

The costs for your promoters and project managers are for 3 months - would this project run full-time for that long? Or are their costs getting split between projects?

Thanks,
Rajesh

Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

Hello Rajesh,
Yes, the total cost is $15, 654 with the community contribution so the total requested is $15,149. I forgot to change the name on the tab in the budget- Laird Norton was a different budget. PWX should be in place of their name. Sorry about that confusion.
The project would run for 3 months but they would be working on ...

Hello Rajesh,

Yes, the total cost is $15, 654 with the community contribution so the total requested is $15,149. I forgot to change the name on the tab in the budget- Laird Norton was a different budget. PWX should be in place of their name. Sorry about that confusion.

The project would run for 3 months but they would be working on other projects as well, so yes, costs are split.

Sanitation and then filters optional?

Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

A last second thought:
If there is plentiful supply of water and is being contaminated by open defecation, then a good sanitation program (latrines with good septic systems) and an aggressive push towards 0% open defecation might solve the contamination problem.
The hygiene habits need to also improve, without which a filter project ...

A last second thought:

If there is plentiful supply of water and is being contaminated by open defecation, then a good sanitation program (latrines with good septic systems) and an aggressive push towards 0% open defecation might solve the contamination problem.

The hygiene habits need to also improve, without which a filter project has reduced impact.

If the above 2 happen, then maybe the filters are not needed for spring water.

This does require testing the water first, building toilets, tracking water quality as sanitation habits change ...

Regards,
Rajesh

Rajesh Shah of Peer Water Exchange

Please test for presence of Fecal Coliform. Do you have a testing lab close to the site?
You will need to get samples within 6 hours to the lab (unless you have an icebox). That is the biggest issue in testing water quality in remote places.
It is important to understand the risk of contamination of the source from human and other ma...

Please test for presence of Fecal Coliform. Do you have a testing lab close to the site?

You will need to get samples within 6 hours to the lab (unless you have an icebox). That is the biggest issue in testing water quality in remote places.

It is important to understand the risk of contamination of the source from human and other mammal fecal matter. When the source is a spring it is harder to contaminate it, but if the source is a well or stream, then it is more important to situate the toilets properly.

Implementation; Water quality ; Maintenance

Rosemary O'Mahony of 1001 fontaines

This project seems to include a comprehensive and integrated approach to addressing WASH issues. I have a few questions.
1. It was surprising that the whole project could be implemented in a day, including all of the community education. Could you elaborate on what happens on the day.
2. Once the water has been purified, how i...

This project seems to include a comprehensive and integrated approach to addressing WASH issues. I have a few questions.

1. It was surprising that the whole project could be implemented in a day, including all of the community education. Could you elaborate on what happens on the day.

2. Once the water has been purified, how is recontamination prevented ?

3. I see from the budget that a biosand filter for a family costs USD 80. How frequently do these need to be changed ? Who covers the cost of the replacement ? Is the Community Agent responsible for procuring replacement filters and any other spare parts or does PWW do that ?

Thank you and best wishes.

Rosemary.

Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

Hello Rosemary,
Sorry, that was supposed to say that the project will be completed in one phase! I will correct that :) The installation process usually takes 1.5 days depending upon the number of filters to install and the number of PWW employees working in that community. This does not include community socialization, community agent ...

Hello Rosemary,

Sorry, that was supposed to say that the project will be completed in one phase! I will correct that :) The installation process usually takes 1.5 days depending upon the number of filters to install and the number of PWW employees working in that community. This does not include community socialization, community agent training or the three additional workshops.

Safe water storage is a major focus during the community workshops. We also provide a water jug for the collection of filtered water and a safe water storage bucket which of course comes with a lid and a faucet. Our education materials and talks also cover chlorination of water after filtering. We do make the recommendation to apply this additional step to ensure water remains free of contamination until it is consumed/used, however, we find that the large majority of people dislike the taste of chlorine and therefore barely use additional chlorine after filtration. Because of this we focus heavily on proper usage and protection of filtered water.

The filter, once up and running can last up to 15 years or even longer. It is extremely rare that the filter or any filter parts need replacement, apart from the used materials (sand and gravel). These might need to be replaced if a family has not used the filter for a certain length of time. The community agents are in charge of detecting such issues and reporting them back to us. In case the filter materials really do need to be exchanged, the costs are either covered by the beneficiary himself (in case it is their own fault that replacement is necessary), or the costs are covered by PWW (in case the family is not responsible for the need for new materials or as in some cases really cannot afford the replacement materials for economic reasons).

Thanks!
Jamin

Rosemary O'Mahony of 1001 fontaines

Dear Jamin,
Thank you for your very comprehensive responses to my questions. I have also seen your responses to Christine. It seems that the key challenge is to ensure that the water has not been re-contaminated before it has been consumed. If the consumers are reluctant to use chlorine for this, perhaps some other kinds of water...

Dear Jamin,

Thank you for your very comprehensive responses to my questions. I have also seen your responses to Christine. It seems that the key challenge is to ensure that the water has not been re-contaminated before it has been consumed. If the consumers are reluctant to use chlorine for this, perhaps some other kinds of water containers could be explored ?

Best wishes. Rosemary.

Carolyn Meub of Pure Water for the World

Good morning, Rosemary,
We have increased education on proper handling of source water and the families receive a large water bottle and a bucket with lid and spigot. These changes seem to have helped. As we continue to monitor current projects we can make necessary changes- that might include changing water containers.
Thanks!
Ja...

Good morning, Rosemary,

We have increased education on proper handling of source water and the families receive a large water bottle and a bucket with lid and spigot. These changes seem to have helped. As we continue to monitor current projects we can make necessary changes- that might include changing water containers.

Thanks!
Jamin

Rosemary O'Mahony of 1001 fontaines

Dear Jamin,
Thank you very much for this update. It is encouraging to hear that the increased education is having an impact.
Best wishes. Rosemary.

Dear Jamin,

Thank you very much for this update. It is encouraging to hear that the increased education is having an impact.

Best wishes. Rosemary.

Rating: 6

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The project is very comprehensive in that addresses clean water and sanitation in an underserved area, so I would like to have been able to give it a higher rating. However, the proposed approach represents quite a high cost per beneficiary and the quality of the water at the point of consumption is variable since it relies a lot on the beneficiary chlorinating and storing the water correctly and using the filters regularly. I would like to see additional focus on processes for ensuring that the quality of the water is maintained, conducting frequent tests of water quality, measuring the impact on health in addition to the monitoring statistics and creating incentives for on-going usage and maintenance once the PWW team has done its seven month post-implementation visit.

Rating: 5

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There are 2 parts to this project and i think they should be separated and sequenced.

The sanitation part i think deserves a 7. Though i would want it to be more aggressive and control open defecation.

The water filtration part should be postponed.
After the latrines are built and open defecation is reduced, the water quality should be monitored. Water from springs should be pretty good, and if it is being contaminated by open defecation, as stated, then quality should improve.

If it improves, then maybe the community does not need filters. This would be a good incentive for all to push sanitation facilities, use, and hygiene. If hygiene is not good, filters will not be effective any way. And it will test the proper construction of the septic system of the latrines.

If quality does not improve and contamination sources are identified which cannot be eliminated, only then should the filter project should be considered.

Rating: 6

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Number of beneficiaries to be impacted is relatively low comparing to the funds requested

Rating: 6

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Rating: 7

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The per person cost is very high ($149). However looking at the needs, problems and local situation, there is a strong need to address the drinking water and sanitation issues to save the life of the people.
Hence the project is recommended to consider as a special case for approval.

Rating: 9

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Thanks for answering our questions.

Rating: 7

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This is a comprehensive project that will help a small community. It will be better if they can reduce the transportation fee and spend some in testing the quality of filtered water.

Rating: 9

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I am happy with the implementation plan for this project because it incorporate elements to ensure sustainability. They seem to actively set their own monitoring criteria. And the budget is reasonable.